Dog Protects Missing Boy From Cold Until He's Found Safe
Cooper, the beloved pet of the Urness family, is credited with saving the life of 3-year-old Carson, who went missing for nearly seven hours. Cooper lay down and covered the boy as the temperature dropped, protecting him from the elements.
Carson disappeared from his home in Cooperstown, North Dakota, around 7:30 p.m. After frantically searching for the boy, his parents realized that Cooper was missing as well. They searched for another 30 minutes before calling 911 to help look for Carson. Police and fire departments began searching, and nearly 200 people from the town showed up to help as well.
"You think of the worst, but then I knew Cooper was gone," mom Courtney Urness told WDAZ. "If anyone was going to find him, they'd just have to find Cooper."
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"They had an airplane here searching for him and 60 four-wheelers and people looking on foot and didn't find anything," Brock Urness told ABC News.
One of the four-wheelers made a final sweep of the area at 2:30 a.m. That's when the driver discovered Cooper lying on top of Carson, presumably to keep him protected from the cold. Only Carson's feet were left exposed, cold and a little sore.
"That four-wheeler found him about a mile away from our house, in the middle of our fields by a pasture," Brock said. "Carson was in tall grass but when they shone lights down to sweep it, the dog stuck its head out. Carson told his mom that Cooper stayed on top of him and kept him safe and warm. He told her that he was a little scared when it got dark because he didn't like the dark."
"Great dog," Courtney said. "I just didn't realize that he would actually be keeping him warm and protecting him."
It's a touching story, given that Cooper was a rescue dog found along the side of the road in the country. Carson is now back home with his family and Cooper, of course.
